My pre-Christmas rush

Thank you for taking the time to visit my lovelies!

Is it bedlam in your house at the moment? Oh my goodness, well it's madness with us, that's for sure! In the past 24 hours I've -

• Made my first batch of Christmas fudge
• Packed up all my Christmas presents, including said fudge and got those off in the post.
• Had an hour's power walk as part of my daily exercise routine and effort to drop 5lbs before Christmas (1.5 to go...)
• Written all of my Christmas cards, ready for posting tomorrow
• Cooked a roast dinner
• Done three loads of laundry
• Got up and gone to work
• Made a casserole in my lunchtime
• Made the Christmas dinner gravy a la Jamie Oliver - this get ahead recipe is well worth the effort (even if you have to do it after a day at work!)

On the blogging front however, I'm constantly playing catch up. It's taken me a week to get this outfit in front of a willing photographer (thank-you Steve!), but the weather was quite a challenge. The wind-swept look was hard to avoid, even here at Old Grimsby which was the most sheltered spot we could find in my allotted five minute slot.

Just recently you may have seen this pea coat by Kew159 (see here) and since then it's been on my mind to make the most of this flattering longer length jacket. Although it's not cosy, it's just so pretty that I knew I could layer it up to make it wearable at this time of year. The shaggy sweater supplies warmth to the outfit and the jacket adds style. Do you agree?

I hope to bring this outfit into play over the festive period, perhaps to wear to a drinks party. We're hosting a couple of drinks parties at work over Christmas and New Year so this may well make an appearance. 

The fluffy pink sweater came from the retro shop "Enjoy" in Truro. My midnight blue velvet trousers were £1 from a charity shop which I customised by cutting off the bottoms to make them into crops and then adding some beading trim and flowers that I'd scavenged from an old lace and beaded vest top. See the post about that here.

The star of the show today however, has to be this fabulous pre-loved multicoloured handbag (£11) that I found recently during my shopping trip to London (here). I adore the sweater and bag together, but annoyingly I did also have my new pink leather gloves inside the bag, ready for the shoot, but forgot to flash them at the right time. Once back home I found them - doh! The large flower ring and bangle were both gifts from friends and the jewelled ring was £1 from a thrift shop. The oversized pearls are old now, but were from Debenhams.

The pink sock boots were my Christmas present from Jamie last year. They're from H&M, and yes are the exact same pair as my red ones. My passion for these still burns bright.

And this is me, striding off to the next challenge that awaits. Don't bother calling me Superwoman yet - by tomorrow I'll probably be sobbing as some tiny problem swamps me, bringing me to a standstill! Balance in life somehow always manages to elude me ...

                                                                                    Anna x

Tartan and fur for that festive feeling

Hurrah, Christmas cometh!

Hello again my dear readers. I suddenly find myself on that crazy roller coaster ride that is the countdown to Christmas. I have a mixture of joy and panic flipping inside my tummy currently. Yes, I bought a lot of presents, but no, I've not checked if all the festive food menus are going to work out. This weekend I'll be nipping to St Mary's to have my hair cut and check out the last of my to-do list at the shops. How about you? Are you making progress towards the big day?

I've rolled out one of my favourite Christmas looks today with my teddy bear spruce green fur coat supported by a very healthy dose of tartan (or plaid for my readership across the pond). I'm terribly partial to bit of tartan which probably has something to do with being Scottish I suppose.

My beloved tartan boots were from M&S last year.  I must admit that my skirt and boots together remind me of my clan tartan.

This is Kerr tartan, the fabric of my clan. I wonder if this was worn to battle hundreds of years ago?

The only battle I was facing was with the driving winds, but that was a small price to pay for this stunning backdrop across the harbour at New Grimsby over to Bryher.

So, the outfit comprises of the fur coat by The Vintage Collection which came from TK Maxx last year, tartan skirt and black polo neck are both pre-loved and black cotton rich tights are from Tesco's. 

This has to be my favourite black sweater. I love the figure shaping ribbing plus the gilt buttons lift it out of the ordinary. Wash after wash it seems to hold it's shape beautifully. My necklace was a charity shop find, silver and black rings are one pre-loved and one from many moons ago.

My thanks for today's photos go to my lovely friend Fiona who gave up her lunch break to gad about with me looking for the right backdrop for our shoot. I hope you've enjoyed another peek at my island home. Have a great week and I hope to catch up with you again soon!

                                                                                    Anna x

High heeled wellies?

Hello my lovely readers and welcome!

Yes, you did read correctly - high heeled wellies. What on earth? As you know I'm not one to hold with the rules of fashion and today I thought I'd share an outfit that reflects a different aspect of my island life. Jeans and jumper were the practical choice for a day of moving and crating art, but add to that the annoying mixture of weather - sunshine and showers with puddles underfoot and downpours suddenly appearing from nowhere - and you end up with me wearing a crazy combination of everything from sunglasses to wellies. 

So yes, this is what I stomp about in on these blustery winter days. The metallic raincoat (Tokyo Laundry) came from TK Maxx and is as waterproof as any wet gear I've ever owned. The purple jeans were preloved and from Gap.

And here they are, my high heeled wellies! I'll be honest with you, I didn't go searching for these. No, they found me. I was on holiday in St Andrews in January when I came across them in a charity shop. I decided to wait and think about them overnight. On telling my sister she informed me that they'd surely be gone by the next morning, a size 6, in great condition and only £6. I took great pleasure in assuring her that no, I'm the only woman this side of the border who would even consider buying them!

My fluffy pink sweater is by Wild Flower and the wellies have no brand name at all.

And just to prove my point about the mixed weather, half way through out photo shoot Fiona and I got caught in a shower. Cue my tartan brolly to the rescue. This has to be my most fashion faux-pas post ever! But hey, I don't care. This was indeed the outfit of the day and you can make of it what you will.

The silver and black rings make great partners even though they come from different sources, one of which was a charity shop. And my old faithful sunglasses are from Quay Australia.

Don't you just love the fickleness of the Great British weather? Dazzling sunshine between blustery showers. Oh what fun!

                                                                                  Anna x

Style or mish-mash?

Welcome to my midweek mash-up!

We none of us live in a bubble and sometimes I'm very happy to dip into the latest magazine to see what's trending or what those in the fashion know are predicting. Other times, like today, I have no fashion compass, no style road I'm trying to follow or icon I'm trying to emulate. Today is all about colour and very much harps back to my fashion motto of "Let's bin the beige and have fun with colour".  

The fun comes by way of the vibrant mixture of checks, leopard print and another pair of vintage boots - not so very different from what I wore in my last feature actually!  I didn't plan this or even notice the connection until I started putting this post together and noticed the similarities.

The season of winter coats is well upon us now; this beauty of mine is a vintage piece from Sicily. You'll have seen it over the past couple of winters no doubt, but not paired with these stretch trousers (Zara). You know how I love a bit of pattern play!

The leather cowboy boots are vintage too, bought from a charity shop in Penzance last year.

The fluffy jumper is a bit old, so much so, that I've forgotten where I purchased it. No matter, the power of the fluff is all that counts. I've layered a thin thermal top (M&S) underneath which truly signals that we're in winter now. 

Today's necklace and rings are pre-loved and my sunglasses are by Zara.

With only 20 days to go until Christmas I'm starting to look out my Christmas jumpers along with all of the sequins and sparkles I've got stashed away ready for the festive season. My recent shopping expedition to London has supplemented the cache which is very exciting. Is it too soon to be adding a glitter cardi to the outfit of the day I wonder? I'm off to check out some of my favourite bloggers to see if they've succumbed to the lure of the glitter yet ...

I'll be linking up with -

Catherine of Not Dressed as Lamb

Patti of Not Dead Yet Style

Jacqui of Mummabstylish

                                                                                           Anna x

Print frenzy

 

Hello and happy Sunday to my dear readers. Here I am today on the 1st of December enjoying the dry, sunny weather. No wet-gear or winter coat required, hurrah! You may remember seeing this leopard print top from a recent shopping trip (see here). Well, this is my first bit of styling. What do you think?

The top is by Tahari and came from TK Maxx (£19.99). It's a soft and cosy man-made fabric and I chose it mostly for the colour which is neither blue nor lilac. At the time of purchase I had no idea what I'd wear it with, but a quick root around in my wardrobe resulted in this outfit.

Apart from the top, I have say that I see these boots as the star of the show today. They're DKNY and must be at least 20 years old now. I had a good look at the box when I rediscovered them the other day to see that they're called Florence and the pattern name is Wallpaper. Well I can totally understand that name as yes, they do remind me of a wallpaper pattern.

The woollen skirt (by Claire DK) boasts this adorable mini kick pleated finish which flicks as you walk. It's a very grown-up skirt. I love it and do wonder how I manage to overlook it so often when I'm searching for inspiration in my closet. It drew lots of compliments today.

This cute little coral satchel bag pushed into the scene today thanks to the blue edging. I must have picked this up in a charity shop, but it has no label. No matter, it works perfectly to add a splash of colour to the otherwise blue theme. My rings are charity shop finds.

The blue faux leather jacket is an old favourite of mine and just worked to so well with the smart casual look I wanted to create. The brand is Toxik 3. Sunglasses are by Quay Australia. 

The bargain piece of the whole ensemble is this silver chain mail belt which I picked up for £1 in a charity shop. 

Much as I've called this a pattern frenzy, I think the checks, leopard print and wallpaper pattern don't clash at all, but meld beautifully in this melody of blue. I've mostly shopped my closet too, so I always give myself a pat on the back for that. 

Thanks to Fiona, my photographer of the day. She did a great job, despite us being photo bombed by a cat at one point!

Have a great weekend!

Anna x

Charity shopping at Crisis in London

Hello from London!

I love that saying, "Every cloud has a silver lining". Last weekend my silver lining took the form of a visit to stay with my dear friend in London. Ben used to be a Gallery assistant of mine (about 10 years ago I think) and our friendship has continued over the years. He's now a mature student studying for a degree in Japanese at SOAS in London. Although he's only just started his course I have every faith in his ability to achieve his goal. When he worked with me he was an absolute power horse, with not just a huge capacity for work, but he had a real flair for selling. Bright as a button and utterly focussed, this guy was always gonna go far! I'd come away to the mainland to have minor surgery on the skin cancer on my back, but rather than the starkness of a trip for that alone, I decided to tag on his offer to stay and have a tour of his local charity shops.

I'd forgotten my Oyster card, but Ben told me I could just use my contactless card to get around on the tube. I loved that I could keep the card safely inside the palm of my glove as I swiped my way around the underground! How exciting these wee things are for an island lass.

My wonderful shaggy leather bag was a gift from Ben many months ago. He bought it in Stanley Market in Hong Kong on his last trip there. Coat is by Covent Garden, two piece is by Zara as are these most comfortable of boots. Handbag is by Carvella. 

But first, was breakfast. Of course. You can't go shopping without a decent breakfast and Duck and Waffle serve a pretty mean breakfast it has to be said.  

The view from this 40th floor restaurant isn't too shabby either.

Ben went for the house special, Duck Benedict whereas I opted for something more simple, but equally delicious. We toasted the day over a glass of Mimosa. For a moment I was worried that we'd peaked too early. 

But no, things were just about to get a whole lot better. Ben took me to his favourite curated charity shop, Crisis at the bottom of Stroud Green Road, Finsbury Park. The shop does away with that endless searching for a gem which can be so time consuming. Instead the staff pride themselves with sifting through the donations to steam and display designer wear along with more funky pieces that can command a good price. 

Coming from our tiny island community, one of the shocking truths about London for me is the amount of homeless people you see as you travel around the city. Ben told me that the number of deaths of the homeless is already over 140 this winter. It's a chilling thought that we're barely into winter and this figure is set to rise when the first cold snap hits. Crisis aims to help in the long term as well as over Christmas by bringing those in need off the streets into a caring community where they can not only eat and shower, but access all kinds of medical support and practical help too. My shopping was going to make a real difference to lots of lives. 

The haul!

When we returned to base Ben kindly modelled one of my most sparkly finds. This (H&M) cardigan will surely come into its own over the festive period.

The spree was mostly from the Crisis shop with a few other finds from the Cancer Research shop in Muswell Hill. Exhaustion soon set in, resulting in us beating an early retreat home. Ben cooked dinner while I had a soak in the bath, but not before I spread the loot out for us to admire. Not the best photo, I'm afraid, but you'll see more of these pieces over the next few weeks I'm sure.

All shopped out!

Truro was suitably festive by the time I arrived on Monday. I had time to do some Christmas shopping before going to the hospital for my appointment. In keeping with the island-girl-goes-shopping tradition, I packed up a box of presents, putting them in the post before coming home. Ben had sent a box of clothes home for me too. 

By Tuesday I had reduced my luggage to this amount. That day I had a frustrated trip to Land's End airport as the weather or rather cross-winds, put paid to my flight home. En masse we weary-from-going-nowhere travellers were sent away to return the next day. I took this opportunity to deposit my suitcase at the docks to be shipped home to me, hence avoiding excess baggage charges.

24 hours later and hurrah! Here she comes!

Farewell to the mainland! See you again next year.

Anna x